Exclusive: Lee Hendrie names 4 current EFL Championship players destined for management | OneFootball

Lee Hendrie has spoken to FLW about the current second-tier players who he sees becoming managers in the future.

Sky Sports pundit Lee Hendrie has listed Ashley Young, Steve Cook, Barry Bannan and James McClean as current Championship players that can step up into future managerial roles.

In the second-tier, there are a number of older players coming towards the end of their careers and may be tempted to swap the pitch for the dugout.

We’ve already seen a number of managers in the EFL pyramid hang up their playing boots to be coaches in recent times, including the likes of Tom Cleverley, Russell Martin and Ryan Mason.

And there will undoubtedly be more entering the frame in the coming years, with some players unable to step away from the frenetic and pulsating nature of football that we all love.

It does take a person of certain characteristics to be successful as a coach, with them needing to be a leader, motivator and tactician that can get the best out of a playing squad they inherit.

Some of the more senior players in the division are likely to have those qualities that can make them a successful manager later down the line, and it will be intriguing to see which of the current crop will get an opportunity to show their skills in the EFL.

With this in mind, former Aston Villa midfielder Lee Hendrie has spoken to FLW about the current second-tier players that he can see becoming future managers.

Lee Hendrie backs Ashley Young, Steve Cook & Barry Bannan to be future managers

Speaking exclusively to Football League World, Sky Sports pundit Lee Hendrie believes the quartet of Ashley Young, Steve Cook, Barry Bannan and James McClean can progress into managerial roles after they retire from playing, with all possessing leadership skills and a winning mentality.

Hendrie said: “I’d probably go for players that are coming towards the end and have good leadership qualities and a good temperament to have a winning mentality.

“Ashley Young at Ipswich Town would be one of them, being in the game for so long and still going. I think he will take the next step of going and taking a manager’s job to be around a lot of top coaches and players.

“Steve Cook at QPR, I did one of my coaching badges a long while back that was, and you think he would be the type of person that would go into a managerial role as well.

“A third one is quite difficult. I’d probably go for someone outside the box like Barry Bannan or James McClean at Wrexham.

“Barry has been around the international stage, played a hell out of a lot of games and is still going at it with Sheffield Wednesday. McClean has got a fiery temperament, and I could see those type of guys taking a managerial role.”

Championship quartet can be successful managers in years to come

As Lee Hendrie alluded to, the current players who have a chance of becoming great managers must possess qualities of leadership while having a desire to win, and the quartet mentioned definitely have those in abundance.

Ashley Young is yet to pursue his coaching badges due to still playing at the age of 40, but you would think he would be advised to attain them in the short-term future with not many years of playing time left.

Steve Cook has been a big organiser of defenses for the likes of QPR and Bournemouth over his career and would certainly fit the profile of an esteemed coach, while Barry Bannan and James McClean possess the passion and guile needed to win over supporters and drive a group of players to success, if they wish to take that challenge on.

It’s certainly an exciting time in football for young coaches, who are being given more opportunities than ever before to showcase what they can offer, and it won’t be surprising to see some of these names crop up on vacancy shortlists in the next few years.